Road trips have a way of turning the journey into the destination. Photographer Maria Kn recently spent two weeks crossing Austria, Italy, Croatia, Slovenia and the Czech Republic, capturing the spirit of a European summer along the way. What began as a drive from Berlin to a friend’s wedding in Croatia soon evolved into a photographic diary of mountain roads, hidden swimming spots, roadside views and the beautiful discoveries found between one destination and the next.
Photography by Maria Kn and Kveeen
“This series began with a simple realization: instead of flying from Berlin to a friend’s wedding in Croatia, one could drive and make a road trip out of it. Driving through Austria, Italy, Croatia, Slovenia, the Czech Republic, and back to Berlin, making two weeks out of it. I’ve been to a lot of these places before, but usually I’d visit one city at a time. This time, I became more interested in everything in between—the mountain passes, random swimming spots, roadside views, and the little moments that would’ve been easy to miss otherwise.
I had just bought a Leica the day before leaving the US, so I didn’t really have a plan beyond wanting to get to know the camera. I packed a couple rolls of Portra 400, some old Polaroid film that had already been through airport X-rays, and hoped for the best. There was a massive heat wave across Europe, so a lot of the trip ended up revolving around finding lakes, rivers, and anywhere to cool off.
“Instead of chasing photographs, I just let them happen.”
One of my favorite memories happened in Slovenia. I went skinny dipping in this unreal turquoise lake tucked between the mountains, and while I was swimming, a family with a bunch of kids paddled past in a kayak. Nobody stared, nobody made a scene—they just kept going. It felt so refreshingly normal. That moment really stuck with me. The whole trip felt like that: unplanned, slow, and free. Instead of chasing photographs, I just let them happen, and this series became a diary of some cute moments and places I found along the way.”
Maria Kn also contributed to our C-Heads Print Volume 38. The issue delves into the art of slowing down, celebrates the joy of crafting, invites you to feel free from society’s temporal constraints, and captures the alluring sentiment that everything looks more beautiful under the sun. The print edition is sold out, but the issue is still available as a digital edition.
